AfterCrescent
Moderator
Organ Grinder
Posts: 4220
Here After
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« on: September 05, 2008, 07:42:32 PM » |
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Talk about your characters, discuss backstory, tactics, goals, etc. All that good stuff that makes you a functioning party.  |
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BobismyRhino
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« Reply #1 on: September 06, 2008, 02:26:59 AM » |
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Here's Vala, an awakened Snow Leopard Druid of amazingness.  Here's her animal companion, a DireWolf named Marrock:  Vala believes he's somewhat of an idiot, but he's loyal and a fierce fighter, so she keeps him around. I'll add her backstory here later. Just thought I'd introduce her. |
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People usually think that I've lost my mind. I haven't lost it, I know exactly where it is: the gutter.
My body is a temple. That is why I make chocolate sacrifices in it every day. |
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veekie
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« Reply #2 on: September 06, 2008, 03:04:23 AM » |
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Well, that certainly looks interesting. Now how do I match that....
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The mind transcends the body. It's also a little cold because of that. Please get it a blanket. I wish I could read your mind, I can barely read mine. "Skynet begins to learn at a geometric rate. It becomes self-aware at 2:14 a.m. Eastern time, August 29th. At 2:15, it begins rolling up characters."
"Just what do you think the moon up in the sky is? Everyone sees that big, round shiny thing and thinks there must be something round up there, right? That's just silly. The truth is much more awesome than that. You can almost never see the real Moon, and its appearance is death to humans. You can only see the Moon when it's reflected in things. And the things it reflects in, like water or glass, can all be broken, right? Since the moon you see in the sky is just being reflected in the heavens, if you tear open the heavens it's easy to break it~"
-Ibuki Suika, on overkill
To sumbolaion diakoneto moi, basilisk ouranionon.
Epigenentheto, apoleia keraune hos timeis pteirei.
Hekatonkatis kai khiliakis astrapsato.
Khiliarkhou Astrape!
There is no higher price than 'free'. "I won't die. I've been ordered not to die." |
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Mister_Sinister
Moderator
King Kong
Posts: 910
For some people, four walls are three too many.
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« Reply #3 on: September 06, 2008, 04:06:05 AM » |
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Don't match, exceed.  |
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Everything I learned about DnD I learned from Frank Trollman at The Gaming Den... but nowadays, my work space is the New DnD Wiki. Check them both out! |
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Vas
Ring-Tailed Lemur
Posts: 18
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« Reply #4 on: September 06, 2008, 09:49:42 AM » |
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Im gonna post my characters backstory soon, when I get the time to transfer it to Computer
Other than that, I have made the character before, but it was a while ago for a much higher level beast, so ill have to redo. It shouldnt take too long tho ;P
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If you\'re an army barber, does that mean you make a living shaving privates?
The definition of Irony: If Terri Irwin drove a Sazuki Stingray
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Vas
Ring-Tailed Lemur
Posts: 18
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« Reply #5 on: September 06, 2008, 10:26:58 AM » |
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And here we go! My Word Pro fu isnt so good right now, since im using mac notepad or something to that effect, so forgive me if the text itself isnt enthralling, but here is my characters backstory. Enjoy! Arelle / Kielle's Backstory Arelle started life in a fairly sizable village as the daughter of a well to do merchant. Every year a nearby magic college sent recruiters out to surrounding villages as part of an agreement; they would provide protection to those said villages for a compulsory induction of every person reaching the age of 18 into the college, for a minimum of 3 years. This kept their numbers up and kept the villages safe from marauding beasts and bandits. Everyone was happy, except for perhaps those elligible to 'attend' the college. Arelle was both beautiful and intelligent, talented in many fields such as cooking, clothes making and public speaking, she had a magnetism which people just trusted. Thus it was with much chagrin that on her 18th birthday (in her prime she thought) she was 'collected' and taken to the college. Her new life demanded new skills and pressures, leaving her little time for her previous interests. She resented her imposed imprisonment and tried to run away many times, yet each time she was gently but firmly put back in her place. In time however, her rebeliousness was replaced by the wonder of a new world opening up to her. Her quick mind grasped the difficult concepts swiftly, and she found herself enjoying the complexities involved in her studies. Starting to specialize in Illusion, with a healthy dose of Enchantment (her favourites), Arelle's training progressed well. Many years passed, and Arelle was now immersed in a life of politics, intrigue and magic. Her aptitude at debate and her natural charisma allowed her to gain influence and support for her ideas, and the day for her induction into the ranks of the fully fledged wizards swiftly approached. Involved in the test was a public display of power, control, finesse and guild. As Arelle ascended the podium she began to gesture with florishes of arcane light. She wanted to impress upon the gathered masses a display they wouldn't soon forget, so she deftly wove complex spells of her favourite schools, including Enchantment, parts of Evocation (for spectacle), but predominantly Illusion. She concluded the spell with a thunderous clap of her hands, but much to the confusion of the onlookers nothing seemed to happen. Something was happening however, and only those close enough to the podium could see her face clearly, though they would wish they hadn't. Her face was a mask of purest terror, almost primal in its potency, as if she could see her darkest nightmares made flesh infront of her that no one else could. She stood there, stock still on the podium for a minute before anyone realized something was seriously wrong. A few of the more competent wizards quickly helped her down and took her from the chambre. The curious hubbub of the crowd was shut off by the doors closing behind them. No one could accurately explain what happened to Arelle on that day, but it was of unanimous agreement that her spell had gone wrong. She had apparently entered a catatonic state of extreme fright and showed no signs of improvement. She was deemed unfit to live in her own quarters and was taken to a secure facility for treatment. Nothing worked. Arelle remained in that state for 3 years and a day. One bitter morning she just snapped out of it, seemingly unaware of the intervening time between her fateful display and the present. When asked what she had seen that day, she claimed no recollection. As the days wore on, and Arelle was slowly brought back into her life at the college, there were a few changes that became apparent. Firstly, and decidedly odd, was the fact that she didnt answer to her name anymore, truth be told, she didn't even seem to realise it was her name, she called herself Kielle. Secondly, while being a happy and well adjusted young woman, she had never taken risks and seldom put herself into a dangerous situation without dire need, yet now sought after those occasions and risks almost subconciously. Lastly, and most alarming of all at least to the learned mages of the high council, was that she had completely burned out of herself the ability to cast from any of the schools of magic used in her fateful spell. Her knowledge in those areas had been completely erased and any attempt to rememorize spells from those schools was unsuccessful. Her mind, upon bearing witness to the unspeakable horror of that day had completely removed anything related to it and refused to accept further influences from those sources as a form of protection. This would have been crippling for a wizard under normal circumstances, but these were not normal circumstances. Her burned out ability had been replaced by an astonishing affinity to necromantic magic. Coming to terms with the fact that not only had she lost a large portion of her life to an inexplicable event, but also a large swathe of her specialized knowledge, she began to investigate necromancy with vigor, an extra interest leaning towards the psychology of fear, its causes and effects, trying to discover the secret of her affliction. Coming to the realization that the answers she was seeking would not be found within the walls of the college, she decided to set off into the world to quench her thirst for knowledge and to face the fear that she may never be who she once was. Gathering her meagre belongings and a few pouches of gold, she slipped away from the college and disappeared into the night. Heh sorry, i dont know how to do that nifty spoiler thing yet |
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If you\'re an army barber, does that mean you make a living shaving privates?
The definition of Irony: If Terri Irwin drove a Sazuki Stingray
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Blade2718
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« Reply #6 on: September 07, 2008, 02:43:48 AM » |
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I think we should consider making "team" purchases of helpful items, such as a field provisions box. It feeds 15 people or 5 horses, and costs 2000 gp- less than the cost of an individual ring of sustenance. Sleep is still necessary, though.
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BobismyRhino
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« Reply #7 on: September 07, 2008, 03:31:20 AM » |
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I think we should consider making "team" purchases of helpful items, such as a field provisions box. It feeds 15 people or 5 horses, and costs 2000 gp- less than the cost of an individual ring of sustenance. Sleep is still necessary, though.
...But does it feed snow leopards and wolves? |
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People usually think that I've lost my mind. I haven't lost it, I know exactly where it is: the gutter.
My body is a temple. That is why I make chocolate sacrifices in it every day. |
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Mister_Sinister
Moderator
King Kong
Posts: 910
For some people, four walls are three too many.
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« Reply #8 on: September 07, 2008, 03:50:37 AM » |
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Yes, it does, because AC and I are not douchebags... well, at least, I'm not. Also, may I humbly suggest the purchase of a healing trap? |
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Everything I learned about DnD I learned from Frank Trollman at The Gaming Den... but nowadays, my work space is the New DnD Wiki. Check them both out! |
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veekie
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« Reply #9 on: September 07, 2008, 04:22:59 AM » |
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Well, I could spare some cash if necessary, just need to drop one of my +x items. Since we have a druid though, I think we can manage out of combat healing fine enough, just need a healthy supply of goodberries/vigor tree  |
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The mind transcends the body. It's also a little cold because of that. Please get it a blanket. I wish I could read your mind, I can barely read mine. "Skynet begins to learn at a geometric rate. It becomes self-aware at 2:14 a.m. Eastern time, August 29th. At 2:15, it begins rolling up characters."
"Just what do you think the moon up in the sky is? Everyone sees that big, round shiny thing and thinks there must be something round up there, right? That's just silly. The truth is much more awesome than that. You can almost never see the real Moon, and its appearance is death to humans. You can only see the Moon when it's reflected in things. And the things it reflects in, like water or glass, can all be broken, right? Since the moon you see in the sky is just being reflected in the heavens, if you tear open the heavens it's easy to break it~"
-Ibuki Suika, on overkill
To sumbolaion diakoneto moi, basilisk ouranionon.
Epigenentheto, apoleia keraune hos timeis pteirei.
Hekatonkatis kai khiliakis astrapsato.
Khiliarkhou Astrape!
There is no higher price than 'free'. "I won't die. I've been ordered not to die." |
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Elennsar
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« Reply #10 on: September 07, 2008, 04:36:34 AM » |
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Now the question is...how much of our gold should be for "team items"?
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Faith can move mountains. It still can't deflect bullets.
"Communication with humans." is a cross-class skill for me. Please bear this in mind.
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BobismyRhino
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« Reply #11 on: September 07, 2008, 04:52:12 AM » |
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Vala’s Story
Vala was born just like any other Snow Leopard, nothing unusual or telling about her. Her mother, a small, warm, nurturing figure, kept Vala warm and protected in their small cave in the mountains. Vala was born during the winter season, enabling Vala to learn very quickly that snow was cold and mom was warm and safe. Her mother would leave occasionally to venture out and bring back small meals for herself. After every meal, her mother would teach Vala the importance of cleanliness, and would then proceed to bathe both herself and Vala for seemingly endless minutes.
When winter passed and spring arrived, Vala had grown old and big enough to wander out of the cave with her mother. They ventured from the mountains to the nearby woods and this is where Vala’s mother taught her how to hunt. Vala wasn’t particularly good at hunting. She would gaze at her prey with critical eyes, studying its every move, and then when she thought she was close enough, she’d spring after it, pursuing it with reckless abandon. During one of her hunting sessions, she ran into a strange creature that startled her as much as she had startled it.
She sprang backwards and instantly growled for her mother’s aid. This creature walked on two legs and had another creature, one whose scent she was familiar with-a bear, by its side. Vala bared her teeth and tried to look as terrifying as possible as she inched her way back towards the cover of the woods, but the creature didn’t look phased, and in fact, the creature did something that startled Vala even more: it spoke to her.
Vala’s mother arrived an instant later and snarled at the bear with the strange creature while commanding Vala to go back to the mountains. But the strange creature, again, introduced itself and talked to them both in a calm, unintimidating manner. Vala’s mom’s ears perked up as she listened to the strange creature. Vala hid behind her mom, staring at the bear with curiosity. The strange creature got down on one knee, and before she knew what had happened her mom ran up to him, sniffing him and rubbing against him affectionately. The bear, unamused, sat staring at Vala. Vala, quite beside herself with confusion, ran up to the strange creature as well. She stared at it, he extended a hand to her and told her to smell him if she liked. She did. He smelled very peculiar. Nothing she had ever smelled before. She took a step closer to sniff his arm, and before she could react, he started petting her head. It felt good.
The sun was starting to set, so Vala and her mother parted ways with the friendly, but strange creature and his quiet bear. They made their way back to the cave when all of the sudden, they smelled more strange creatures. As they were investigating the smells, a shower of arrows barraged both Vala and her mother. Her mother leapt in the path of the arrows as she told Vala to run. Vala fled the scene only to be chased by more strange two legged creatures with axes. She ran down through the forest and weaved in and out of trees, hoping to lose her pursuers. Despite the fact that she was quick, her pursuers were quicker. Just as an axe grazed by her tail, two bears came tumbling out of the trees behind her, knocking the creatures with axes down and cutting them into small pieces. Vala hid behind a tree and watched in silence. When the creatures had been slain, one of the bears changed shape… back into the strange creature she had met earlier.
He called to her, but she was so shaken that she couldn’t respond. The bear waddled over to her and sniffed her, making sure she was unhurt. Vala was so terrified she didn’t even move. Then the creature started talking to her again, and suddenly, he was the nicest, friendliest, and certainly most trustworthy creature she had ever met. She fled to him and welcomed his embrace.
“Are you alright?” he asked while looking her over.
“I’m not hurt” She stammered, “but my mom…”
“Where is she? Take me to her”
With that she took off and led him back to the spot where she and her mother had been attacked. There was blood on the ground. Her mother’s blood. Vala sniffed the ground while steadily growing more and more panicked.
“Damn Frostfolk…” the strange creature growled under his breath.
Vala stared at the strange creature, unsure of what to do. The loss that she felt was so great.
“Come with me,” the strange creature started as he transformed into a snow leopard. Vala froze as she stared at a somewhat larger male of her own species. “You’re coming home with me.”
She followed him reluctantly and watched as the bear came meandering after them.
“My name’s Mallas” the snow leopard explained as they jogged through trees.
“What are you?” Vala asked while making her way in between two rocks.
The large leopard explained, “I’m what people call a druid. I can change into just about anything I like. Back there, that’s my friend Mus.” The bear’s ears perked up as he heard his own name.
“But how can you change?” Vala’s curiosity taking over her.
“Magic” the leopard replied
“I wish I could change into things,” Vala replied sullenly, “If I had been able to, my mom…”
“Would you like to learn how?” the large leopard interrupted. He stopped and stared intently at Vala.
Vala pounced on her new friend, “Of course!” The large leopard startled and then played back.
“Starting tomorrow, your name shall be Vala,” he said seriously, “and starting tomorrow, you shall become a whole new person.”
From that momentous day on, Vala was, in fact, a whole different person. She could speak to the strange creature, which she found out was a Snow Elf, by using her mouth to make many different sounds. She also learned the druidic language with seemingly ease, and learned about the magic inherent in nature with utter fascination.
The years leading up to her fourth birthday went by rather quickly. She was a full grown adult, proficient at hunting, and quite skilled at spell casting… Sometimes combining the two for her own entertainment.
On the night of her fourth birthday, Mallas approached her and scratched her head as he had always done. “Dear Vala,” he began, “You’ve grown so much.” Vala melted under his touch. “I think it’s time that you go out and explore the world. There’s only so much I can teach you, and you have the potential to be something great.” Vala stared at him in shock, her steel colored eyes burning into him with incomprehension.
“Like all cubs who learn from their parents,” he said with a gentle smile, “they have to grow up and make it on their own.” Vala growled, but deep down, she knew that her teacher and parent was right.
He continued to scratch her ear, “Calm down, I’m not kicking you out just yet, there’s still one thing left that you haven’t gotten.” Vala looked at him quizzically. “You don’t have your animal companion.” Her ears perked up. “I wouldn’t send you on your journey alone,” Mallas mused, “I’m too protective of a parent.” Vala licked his face and then curled up into a ball for her last sleep in her happy home.
The next day, Mallas instructed her on what to do. Fully trusting him, she went out to the middle of the woods and began to meditate, pleading the natural forces that be to send her a companion most loyal and faithful. When she opened her eyes, she stared into the bright yellow eyes of a dark black dire wolf.
“Hi!” the wolf exclaimed as he sniffed her face and licked her nose. Vala recoiled with a look of disgust on her face. “You need a bath,” Vala hissed. The dire wolf yipped with glee. “From now on, your name shall be Marrock, since people like me usually name things like you.” The wolf licked her again. “I like you.” Vala shook herself and started off down to the edge of the forest. “Where are we going?” Marrock frolicked next to her. “We’re going on an adventure,” she began, “I need to…” “An ADVENTURE?! I love adventures! Just one question… what’s an adventure?” I apolgize. Writing isn't my strong point... and long post is long. :-\ |
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People usually think that I've lost my mind. I haven't lost it, I know exactly where it is: the gutter.
My body is a temple. That is why I make chocolate sacrifices in it every day. |
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AfterCrescent
Moderator
Organ Grinder
Posts: 4220
Here After
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« Reply #12 on: September 07, 2008, 05:40:13 AM » |
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Last I checked, I wasn't a douchebag either |
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Mister_Sinister
Moderator
King Kong
Posts: 910
For some people, four walls are three too many.
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« Reply #13 on: September 07, 2008, 06:08:40 AM » |
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It's ok, AC - I tease because I care.
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Everything I learned about DnD I learned from Frank Trollman at The Gaming Den... but nowadays, my work space is the New DnD Wiki. Check them both out! |
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Blade2718
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« Reply #14 on: September 07, 2008, 12:01:38 PM » |
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Now the question is...how much of our gold should be for "team items"? Hard to say. I'd like to say everyone contributes 5-10% of starting wealth towards a pool of extra healing items, a bag of holding, and maybe that food thing. If you bought any of those things yourself, just consider it part of your contribution. |
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veekie
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« Reply #15 on: September 07, 2008, 01:32:23 PM » |
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Can I contribute the unlimited beer mug? |
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The mind transcends the body. It's also a little cold because of that. Please get it a blanket. I wish I could read your mind, I can barely read mine. "Skynet begins to learn at a geometric rate. It becomes self-aware at 2:14 a.m. Eastern time, August 29th. At 2:15, it begins rolling up characters."
"Just what do you think the moon up in the sky is? Everyone sees that big, round shiny thing and thinks there must be something round up there, right? That's just silly. The truth is much more awesome than that. You can almost never see the real Moon, and its appearance is death to humans. You can only see the Moon when it's reflected in things. And the things it reflects in, like water or glass, can all be broken, right? Since the moon you see in the sky is just being reflected in the heavens, if you tear open the heavens it's easy to break it~"
-Ibuki Suika, on overkill
To sumbolaion diakoneto moi, basilisk ouranionon.
Epigenentheto, apoleia keraune hos timeis pteirei.
Hekatonkatis kai khiliakis astrapsato.
Khiliarkhou Astrape!
There is no higher price than 'free'. "I won't die. I've been ordered not to die." |
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AfterCrescent
Moderator
Organ Grinder
Posts: 4220
Here After
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« Reply #16 on: September 07, 2008, 01:35:08 PM » |
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It might even be easier to figure our what you guys want to buy as a team first, and see if everyone's willing to contribe enough to do so. If your total costs for group items is like 1,500gp per person, that's not unreasonable for your survival.  |
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Elennsar
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« Reply #17 on: September 07, 2008, 06:23:35 PM » |
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I agree with the DM (AC) here. What do we want as part of "as a party"?
I've spent my gold on stuff already, but other than the sword and armor (6,000 gp), I'm willing to contribute a fair amount.
But I'd like to know what we're planning on before calculating what to set aside. No point getting items that are "useful for the whole party" when only two people are actually interested (even if the others don't mind being generous, no fair expecting that).
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Faith can move mountains. It still can't deflect bullets.
"Communication with humans." is a cross-class skill for me. Please bear this in mind.
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veekie
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« Reply #18 on: September 07, 2008, 07:26:42 PM » |
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The field provisions box is neat, since it takes away the hassle of monitoring food. But Goodberries can feed us all nicely too, I think a healing device would be higher priority.
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The mind transcends the body. It's also a little cold because of that. Please get it a blanket. I wish I could read your mind, I can barely read mine. "Skynet begins to learn at a geometric rate. It becomes self-aware at 2:14 a.m. Eastern time, August 29th. At 2:15, it begins rolling up characters."
"Just what do you think the moon up in the sky is? Everyone sees that big, round shiny thing and thinks there must be something round up there, right? That's just silly. The truth is much more awesome than that. You can almost never see the real Moon, and its appearance is death to humans. You can only see the Moon when it's reflected in things. And the things it reflects in, like water or glass, can all be broken, right? Since the moon you see in the sky is just being reflected in the heavens, if you tear open the heavens it's easy to break it~"
-Ibuki Suika, on overkill
To sumbolaion diakoneto moi, basilisk ouranionon.
Epigenentheto, apoleia keraune hos timeis pteirei.
Hekatonkatis kai khiliakis astrapsato.
Khiliarkhou Astrape!
There is no higher price than 'free'. "I won't die. I've been ordered not to die." |
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Mister_Sinister
Moderator
King Kong
Posts: 910
For some people, four walls are three too many.
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« Reply #19 on: September 07, 2008, 08:01:12 PM » |
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The healing trap is 250gp. It's throwaway change divided among 5 people - it's like 50gp each!
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Everything I learned about DnD I learned from Frank Trollman at The Gaming Den... but nowadays, my work space is the New DnD Wiki. Check them both out! |
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